Why are we Desensitizing a sensitive animal???

Desensitizing. It is spouted by nearly every clinician as how to make your horse "safe" to ride in multiple environments. And yet, more often than not, it creates more anxiety in many horses (especially sensitive breeds such as Arabians) and fear and frustration for the owner/rider.
The problem here is that people are being led to believe a falsehood.  That a horse that handles new environments, new situations, and new stimulus are "desensitized" and thus are not bothered by these things. They are missing the most important bit of information, the horse that handles the situations is not "desensitized" to them, but has learned how to process and react in a secure manner. What we must NOT forget is every horse has their own personality, confidence level, and attention span no different than any of us. So, obviously some horses will be quicker to process and react to new and intimidating stimulus in a secure manner than others.
So, what DO we need to do to prepare our horses  (especially more sensitive personalities) to handle new stimulus in a safe and secure manner?  While it is a simple process, it can be a difficult one to learn and to have the patience for. What you must remember is even the smallest step forward is important.  The process is to teach our horses to look to us for direction during stressful situations and guide them with consistency and patience.  Obviously,  to do this our horse must have a solid base foundation of ground manners,  lunging, etc. As with everything else, the process starts on the ground.  Our example today will be in the attached video. A young Arabian mare who has a tendency to be on the anxious side.
  The Mare knows her basic ground manners, she knows that if she is anxious she is allowed to wiggle, move her feet, and feel as though she can escape if she needs to. It is very important we never remove our horse's comfort in knowing they can escape if needed, forcing them to "hold still" creates a claustrophobic reaction of anxiety that can develop to out right fear. And so, knowing she can move gives the mare an opportunity to express her anxiety as opposed to bottling it up and exploding "unexpectedly" with a bolt, bucking fit, rear, take your pick (not a reaction I enjoy, especially under saddle).  I want you to view that horse being made to hold still as a soda that's been sitting in a hot car, it will explode, it's just a matter of when.  Back to our example Mare.  The Mare is allowed to express her anxiety and thus, she is still aware of her human, not shut down, and is able to be worked to where she begins to focus on her handler and take comfort in being given cues as opposed to panicking. 

Today we used sleigh bells to work on teaching the Mare to focus on her handler and trust in the cues over the urge to escape the new and uncomfortable stimulus (this is her first time working this exercise).  To do this we introduced her to the bells by shaking them as we walked backwards encouraging her to "push" her handler and the bells away from her (unfortunately not on the video) each time she steps closer on her own we stop the ringing. We give her a sense of control. We work this until she realizes if she reaches out to touch the bells or visually relaxes the ringing stops.
Our next step is for her to wear them on her surcingle while free lunging. Now this is the moment we are working for, she may panic and bolt to escape them, she may decide to balk to stop them from making any noise. Our job is to stay the course and ask her to work as if the bells are not even there. Walk, trot, back down to walk, change directions and start all over again (since we know the two side of their brain don't always communicate ;) ).  What you will see if. Our video is the Mare already comfortable working one direction and the reaction when she is asked to work the opposite direction. Add in the wind and the tractor and we have a recipe for a hot mess. But as you will see, staying consistent to the work she already knows and patient helps our Mare develop focus on her handler despite being uncomfortable with the noise on her surcingle.  Over time, this Mare's confidence in her handler/rider and in her self, developed by teaching her to focus and make safe decisions, will rise to the level she will not react in an unpredictable manner in a new situation and eventually behave so that she seems to be "desensitized". 
So, please, teach your horse to focus and make safe secure decisions and forget about "desensitizing" an animal that can read your every emotion, react to your body language before you even finish the thought, and is willing to learn for you despite all the shenanigans we put them through.

Please, as always, feel free to ask any questions.

It's as easy as breathing...Part 2

So, it has been several days since we began our discussion on breathing, how to breath properly and how it affects not only our own body, but our horse as well.

Have we all been practicing?? (at this point, in my head I am hearing "Yes Miss Jessica" in unison via bored math class style) GOOD!!  

Hopefully you are beginning to feel more comfortable with using your entire body to breath and perhaps even not having to think as hard about it.

We left off with practicing drawing breath and then practicing breathing in time while doing ground work with our horse. This is all to set you up for the next step, which is obviously breathing properly while riding.  As always, we are going to start small and discuss "Breathing to the Halt" today.  However, the beauty of this exercise is once your body learns to breath and soften and move as our joints are designed, this will become the method for all of your downward transitions, you will be able to control just how intensely you utilize it to get the most delightful half-halts you can imagine and even better is that your horse will naturally respond to this as you practice and develop.  Your horse will start becoming lighter in the bridle (as you will naturally begin to depend on the bit for your main means of communication).

And so, Breathing to the Halt.

1. Remember that even the , when done correctly is a forward motion(refer to blog "forward is your friend)

2. Walk along on a loose rein and set your self up for success by relaxing, chew some gum, sing a song, ANYTHING to keep your self breathing at a normal rate.

3. Decide WHERE you want to ask for you halt and realize, if you miss the mark the world is pretty much NOT going to end.  So RESIST the urge to grab at the reins.  If you feel you may have a tendency to do this, then ride straight in to a corner or straight at the rail, NOT because this will make your horse stop, but because you will be thinking "My horse is not going to walk face first in to the fence" and this will allow you the opportunity to relax and just concentrate on the exercise.

4.  EYES UP!  If your eyes look down, your center of gravity will be pulled down and forward in to your chest and out of your nice deep relaxed seat.

5. Take the deep body filling breath and using the lower abdomine (just like you practiced standing up) blow the breath from your body in a soft steady rhythm saying "whoa, ho,(pick your command), allow your pelvis to move forward and under you (you will feel your seat bones begin to drop and feel as if they will begin to dig in) DO NOT FIGHT THIS!  You are going to feel your lumbar spine begin to round.  Envision you are sinking through the saddle.  

6.  Now for the tough part, allow your legs to hang, do NOT pull on your reins, and do not lean back thinking that will make your seat deeper.  A "deep seat" comes from a soft and following lumbar spine.

Here is what you will feel from your horse when done correctly:\

A slowing of the walk and an ear likely turning back to you asking "Are you doing that on purpose"? is the most common first reaction.  And a GOOD ONE!  Your horse is going to feel as if he/she is just about to stop and won't.  And why won't they at first? Well, because you will feel the change and likely drop your eyes removing contact from the seat or inadvertently stop breathing out because you are a bit surprised this is working, or you are still bracing and/or stiff and not able to sink through your lumbar yet.  ALAS! DO NOT GIVE UP!  Praise your horse for giving you a reaction, walk on and start all over again.  

Each time will feel more natural and then, you will get your halt, you will feel your horse lift his/her spine as they reach under themselves to stop and wait for your next command.  And when you ask for the walk again you are going to feel your horse drive forward from the hind ready for what's next.

Master this at the halt, and then begin to practice it in your downward from trot to walk, a much tougher task as the lumbar spine needs to be much more supple to follow the trot and keep you from either bouncing or bracing the thus negating the exercise.  

And as always, I feel like just reading this is not enough for you my dear readers and so we have another video!!  However, I decided to really drive the point home to you I was not going to show myself "Breathing to the Halt" on a horse I have trained.  After all, I'm the "professional" so of course I will make it look easy, right?  

Instead I decided to put my poor apprentice, Ann under the microscope on a green 4YO Arabian gelding "Aya Tiki Star Trek".  While Ann has been riding for years, she herself had never learned to breath correctly or use breath as an aid.  "Trek" has been under saddle for a few months now, and the two have only had about 10 to 12 rides together.  And if that isn't enough to convince you, this is only Trek's 3rd time riding and working in our main arena which is not fenced, merely a cleared out patch of desert.  NOTE, you can HEAR Ann breathing as she asks for the halts.  

I hope this helps, and if you have any questions, please, ask in the comments or via facebook  :)

 (PS. shameless plug, Aya Tiki Star Trek is available for sale via Aya Arabians at www.facebook.com/ayaranch)

Now, go practice!!!

It's as easy as breathing...

Or, is it??
So, today I asked via Facebook for ideas on what I should write about next.  Like everyone I am prone to fall in to a rut and so thinking of the next topic usually presents it's self when a student has a question or a difficult lesson, or a training horse throws me a curve to work through.
Well, my dear readers, you threw so many ideas at me at once (all good ones by the way) I found myself overwhelmed trying to figure out how to decide which to write about first, how to explain that particular topic and whether I would even be coherent! ACCK!!

At that moment I realized I have yet to cover the most important of topics.  One I harp on be you doing ground work or in the saddle, even if you are just grooming.  I am so particular about it I will spend an entire lesson teaching you how to do it. BREATHING.

But, Miss Jessica, you are thinking to your self, I already know how to breath, or obviously I would not be reading this blog as I would be dead...
The truth is you know how to intake enough oxygen via mechanical reflex to supply your organs with the amount needed.  To truly breath involves your entire body, it is consciously using specific muscles, beyond the lungs, to send oxygen to each and every muscle helping it to have more stamina and yet remain supple at the same time...even, and most importantly, your brain.

So, HOW do you breath then?  It takes practice and being willing to feel a bit foolish (same as everything else in riding) until it becomes muscle memory.
Stand up, take a DEEP breath in for me and focus on where that air goes.  Did you feel your chest puff out and your lungs feel as if they want to burst? THAT is the incorrect way to breath.  Breathing this way, in fact, causes you to stiffen your back and shoulders (and that's just for starters) and you probably coughed as you let the air out.  Now, let's try this again.
This time, (while standing) I want you to take a deep breath slowly and let it fill your entire body with air, allow your stomach to puff out as you relax your deep muscles and allow your lungs to really fill to their capacity in a relaxed state, you should fill your spine lengthen, your shoulder will lift a bit and you will actually feel your pelvis tip backwards a bit (like you are sticking out your bum).  Practice this a few times and then move on to breathing out.
Now, fill your body with air and fill that sensation we talked about and instead of trying to breath out from your chest, use the small group of abdominal muscles just above the pelvic rim (technically this will be using the psoas major, but for now I want you to think of using your internal oblique), flex this muscle group while using the word "hoe" to blow the air from your body.  ALLOW your shoulders to drop, ALLOW your spine to flex, and do not fear the feeling of your pelvis tilting slightly forward towards your head (think a dog tucking his tail).  Do not force these things, just keep practicing until you feel them.  The more you practice the more you will feel your muscles relax, feel more supple, your rib cage will begin to expand more with each breath.  Your pelvis will begin to move on it's own and stretch and relax those pesky lumbar that like to inhibit your sitting trot.

We already know a supple body is important in the saddle, but let's start on the ground. We must remember we are dealing with a herd animal, an animal that looks to it's companions for clues on what kind of behavior is appropriate for the current situation.  So we will begin on the ground, during simple ground work to develop feel and timing of breathing as an aid.
1.  Take your horse for a walk and randomly ask for halts.  That moment before you want the whoa, take that body filling breath and let it out as you stop walking allowing your body to go through the full range of the exhale (don't forget to say "whoa" it helps to flex the muscle) and become soft and relaxed.  Pretty soon you are going to notice a softer horse on the lead rope, a horse that begins to slow and wait for a cue the moment you take in that initial breath.  And eventually, you can even use an over dramatic deliberate sigh to convey to an anxious horse "There is nothing to worry about here".
2.  Practice your "showmanship" (moving hips, shoulders, etc) and again, just as you reach the end of the movement BIG BREATH AND WHOA.

The more you practice, the less awkward and forced it will feel and the more natural it will feel when you are in the saddle.

But, my dear readers, THAT is a topic for my next blog.  After all we must walk before we can run, and we must be able to breath before we can ride.  So, practice these breaths, supple those bodies, and don't be afraid of looking or sounding foolish, hell you go to buy groceries in boots and breeches for crying out loud!!

Why I want you to FAIL, it's good for you.

It's likely quite obvious that I am not one for "memes" or clever little posters hanging on my walls such as that kitten saying "hang in there" despite my proclivity towards certain mantras such as "Forward is our Friend" and "We're not going to the Olympics tomorrow".  I must admit, however, I recently stumbled across a meme somewhere down the rabbit hole we call the internet while searching for the exact wording of a book quote.  Yes, it falls in to that category of "clever" and it is probably on a poster with a picture of a kitten falling out of a tree.  But it was simple and I must admit perfect for our chosen profession/hobby/passion.  

It simple said F.A.I.L.=First Attempt In Learning.

Now, I am the first to admit that I am always in the process of learning, I ask questions, watch closely and taken any opportunity given to gain knowledge from those around me whom I know to have broader experiences.  I have one gal in particular that I tell on a regular basis (after which I duck and run like the dickens even though it is a compliment) "I hope I know HALF about horsemanship as you when I am your age".  So, when I stumbled on this FAIL meme, it really did hit me, THIS is exactly what I have been trying to tell my students for years, but in a much more clear and concise manner.

  I often find myself trying to explain how to leave the past in the past and to not beat themselves up over making a mistake because mistakes are how we learn and I can give you examples of my mistakes all day long but until you make them and feel them for yourself you will not truly understand why XYZ is so important....(yes, that is purposely a run on sentence as I am quite sure that is how my students hear listening to it.).  

What I find hard to fit in there is how IMPORTANT those mistakes are to the learning process and that they are, in fact, a positive aspect. Most of us know the Edison quote "I have not failed, I found 1000 ways not to make a light bulb" and I used to use that to try and instill the value of making a mistake to my students.  And yet, FAIL still has a very negative connotation to it, even in a quote trying to show the good in trying.

Even as adults if we hear FAIL we shrink a bit, we remember a failed test, the disappointment from teachers and parents and soon we tried so hard not to FAIL we actually began to skip learning all together and began to merely regurgitate information.  We shut down our ability to think critically.  In riding, when we can not/do not think critically we can not/will not succeed and more forward.

If I ask a student "why" their own body or their horses did something (bad or good) a large percentage of the time I receive the question back reformed as an answer.  It has been in recent years I have come to realize the are so fearful of giving me the wrong answer, of FAILING my test, they would rather give no answer at all.

And so, this brings me back to FAIL, I WANT my students to FAIL!! I want my students to have that First Attempt in Learning, I want the fear of FAILURE to cease and the realization become "I tried something new/more difficult today.  It did not go as planned, but I understand it better and I will understand it more the next time".  Be mindful to give your horse this opportunity as well, you may not realize it, but our horses are just as sensitive to that feeling they have let us down, it is merely a matter of how that particular animal conveys it.  

So, Tack up and ride, drive, what ever your pleasure and be prepared to FAIL! Be proud of yourself for being brave enough to FAIL!  When you embrace that the FAIL will, in fact, move you forward, you are preparing yourself for a much more satisfying horsemanship experience.  

All you have to do, is not quit.

So, you think you have a strong posting trot....

     So, you've been doing the exercises from my earlier posts.  You have pretty much mastered them and feel pretty strong.  Now you can post comfortably for a full hour lesson.  But are you as solid in your leg as you think?
   Want to know the dirty little secret about the posting trot? Once you get the base line strength developed momentum plays a big part in posting your way around the arena.  But, that's not going to help you out on the trail, over fences, or on a horse that suddenly decides he wants to be the next Sea Biscuit!  The time has come to test your strength, further develop those muscles, and confuse your body...a lot.  It is time for in the saddle posting exercises!

Now, most people automatically assume they should work with out stirrups to strengthen their leg.  The problem with this, is that if you are using your leg wrong to begin with you will only continue to strengthen the wrong muscles and find yourself frustrated and unable to move forward in your riding.  Save "no stirrups" for a little later on.  INSTEAD we are going to have you ride an exercise that makes is impossible for you to cheat or use the wrong muscles.  This exercise can ONLY be accomplished if you are riding centered and correct and have the strength to do it.  Now, like any and all of the exercises I give you, it is doing them correctly that matters, not how many you do or how long you do them.  One done correctly will be two next time and so forth.

     LET'S BEGIN!!
"Up, Down, Up, Down, Up, Down...." You WILL need to talk your self through this set of exercises.  So start out chanting as your post your trot, find your rhythm and groove, nice and easy.  But don't get too comfortable because things are going to change.  Posting is now "Up, Up, Down, Down, Up, Up, Down, Down, Up, Up, Down, Down...."  yes you read that right, read it again and get ready to chant it, one lap around the arena on a loose rein.  Is your body confused yet?  If not, it will be soon.  Go back to a lap of "Up, down, up, down".  Next Lap: "Up, Up, Down, Up, Up, Down, Up, Up, Down..." back to "Up, Down"  Final Lap: "Up, Down, Down, Up, Down, Down, Up...".  Walk, change rein, repeat.

Depending on your fitness level you may only get a few strides in of each one, or only concentrate on the first variation both directions.  But remember, it is about building up to the ability to knock out the entire exercise comfortably one day.

What will you notice?  First and foremost, if you are "cheating" and posting off your feet, your will quickly realize you are unable to get in rhythm or even get out of the saddle.  Because with out the continuous momentum of the "up, down" motion you need strength and balance to complete every movement.  You will also notice your body trying to fight you changing it's "habit" of posting and you will become painfully aware of each and every movement your body parts make now that you are no longer hypnotized by the post.

While working this exercise take care to be soft and let your knees, hips, and ankles flex and bend as you move.  A common side effect of mental stress if the body freezing up as well.  So BREATH, chant the pattern, and enjoy a new challenge that will increase your ability!!